The latest offering by Ichikawa Jun reinforces my love and admiration for his movies. Having seen but just 4, I am tempted now to hunt down the others to continue the experience of movies that are lovely shot, and at a comfortable pace which doesn't seem to be in a hurry to tell a good story. I like how he weaves observations of humanity and brings them to the forefront of his movies, which at first glance, seem to be quite fluffy and a typical chick flick, which I will assure you this film is definitely not.
Based on a story by Kaori Mado, How to Become Myself touches base with what it means to understand oneself, and being very comfortable with it. To be honest, everyone plays different roles in different situations with different people encountered. I can be a brother, friend, soldier, employee, reviewer, son, and the list goes on, putting on different masks, being different persons, adopting various personae. With the advent of the Internet and anonymous profiles, what you can be, is limited only by your imagination. (And of course you've got perverts being totally something else altogether).
And in the many roles we play, how often do we stop and take stock - just who the heck am I? Who's the real me, and what's the "me" that I'm portraying for others to see and interact with? Bottomline is, are you being true to yourself and being honest about yourself with others? Or are you superficially role playing with nary an emotional attachment to the part? What I thought was neat was that the movie doesn't shove this thought down your throat, but rather played it out through the interaction between the leads. Subtlety is by far Ichikawa's strongest point in his movies (based on the 4 I've seen), and his pace of the movies allows you room enough to ponder as scenes transition and the narrative develops on screen.
Juri (Niko Narumi, you'll be amazed that she's only so young, but yet has the capability to take on a character that so layered and yet so subtle in her delivery) plays an ideal girl at home and in school, but this facade is quickly stripped away early in the movie, as we see her loathe her parent's bickering at home, while putting up a false front of a happy, supportive family to the outside world. In the movie, the spotlight is also shared by fellow classmate Hinako (Atsuko Maeda), a popular girl who in a twist of fate, becomes the victim of classroom politics and bullying. Mere acquaintances, they share a poignant conversation just after junior school graduation, before going their separate ways.
The story then fast forwards 2 years later, and Juri, out of curiousity, looks up and emails Hanako, who apparently doesn't seem to remember her, or their conversation. And thus begins a reintroduction and attempts to build a friendship between the two in what is probably one of the most layered stories I've experienced in recent times. It's almost like kueh-lapis, where each layer can be peeled apart and reveals another understanding at a different level. It tells of the story in three ways, through exchanges of email (more on this later), as the catalyst and fuel for creative writing, and of course, in the character's real lives. Juri and Hinako wear different masks to play different roles, consciously and subconsciously, and with each being a projection of their artificially created self, there's no denying just who's playing what role, and questions of whether they're relishing these roles are posed, and when do you know to stop and become yourself, truly?
How To Become Myself あしたの私のつくり方, 2007
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